Startled Pilgrim 1920

J.C. Leyendecker painted ‘Startled Pilgrim’ with oils, and it’s a real hoot. The brushwork's so loose and energetic, giving the whole scene a sense of madcap motion, like it’s all about to spill right off the canvas. The texture is where it's at, thick in places, thinned out elsewhere, creating this push-and-pull effect. I mean, look at the way he renders the startled expression of the pilgrim; it's so raw and immediate! The guy is clearly not having a good day with those rogue arrows. The contrast between the dark suit and the bright, almost cartoonish turkey, it’s like a punchline delivered in paint. And notice that tablecloth pattern, so precise amid the surrounding chaos. Leyendecker, like Norman Rockwell, knew how to tell a story with just one image. But there’s a slightly anarchic energy here, somewhere between advertising and slapstick, that anticipates some of David Hockney's later, more irreverent work.